Container with hand-gripping bands and stainless steel flask

ABSTRACT

A container has a main chamber defined by a stainless steel flask. The flask may be vacuum insulated. A bottom cap is attached to the bottom of the flask. A cup and a stopper can be attached to the top of the flask. Threads for attaching the cup and the stopper can be formed directly on the flask. One or more elastomeric bands can be positioned around the exterior of the flask to facilitate gripping of the container by the user. The elastomeric bands can be positioned between raised ridges formed on the flask to protect the bands from damage and wear and to keep the bands in position during use.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates to the field of personal, portablebeverage storage containers. More particularly, the present inventionrelates to the field of personal, portable beverage storage containerswith a vacuum insulated main chamber formed by a stainless steel flask,and elastomeric bands formed on the exterior of the flask for enhancedgripping and other purposes.

Many types of personal, portable beverage storage containers exist whichallow persons to transport and store beverages. Some of these containersare vacuum insulated to help maintain the beverage at a desiredtemperature. While convenient in many respects, these existingcontainers are not as convenient and desirable for some users as thecontainer described herein. The container of the present inventionprovides a unique combination of features and construction whichenhances the containers usability, permits the container to bemanufactured in a cost effective manner, and provides the user with avisually appealing, attractive, and durable product.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an exemplary embodiment of a containeraccording to the invention with the stopper 40 and cup 30 attached tothe flask 21.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the container of FIG. 1, with the stopper40 and cup 30 removed from the flask 21.

FIG. 3 illustrates a sectional view of another exemplary container takenalong a cutting plane parallel to the central axis of the flask 21.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The principles of the invention will be described through reference to aparticular embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawingfigures. The principles of the invention may be used to create otherembodiments that will differ from the illustrated embodiment in order tosuit particular needs, but that will nonetheless fall within the scopeof the invention. The scope of the invention is intended to be definedin the appended claims.

FIGS. 1-3 illustrate a container 10 that exemplifies the principles ofthe invention. As seen in FIG. 3, the container 10 includes a vacuuminsulated main chamber 20. The main chamber 20 is defined by flask 21.Flask 21 also defines an opening for dispensing the beverage from themain chamber 20. The flask 21 may be vacuum insulated in a known manner,as illustrated, to help maintain the temperature of the beveragecontained in the main chamber 20. In FIGS. 1-3, the flask is formed byan interior shell 22 and an exterior shell 23, with an interior surface22 a formed on the interior shell 22, and an exterior surface 23 aformed on the exterior shell 23. A vacuum insulated space residesbetween the interior shell 22 and the exterior shell 23. In otherembodiments, the flask 21 need not be vacuum insulated.

The flask 21 can be made of stainless steel for durability and easymaintenance, or other metallic materials such as aluminum or titanium.The flask could also be made from plastic materials. Exterior surface 23a of flask 21 is gripped by the user when holding the container 10. Thusthe exterior surface 23 a of flask 21 is viewable and touchable by theuser, and is especially appealing and durable when the flask is madefrom stainless steel. Stainless steel is also an economic material forflask 21 because it does not require any further surface treatments suchas paint. However, surface treatments can be provided to the exteriorsurface 23 a of flask 21, if desirable.

The flask 21 has a bottom cap 24 attached to the bottom. The bottom cap24 has a smooth, flat bottom surface to facilitate the container 10being placed on a table top, and to facilitate handling of the container10. The bottom of flask 21 includes a port 25 used in the vacuuminsulating of the flask. The port 25 can often include rough edges orprotruding surfaces. The port 25 is advantageously covered by the bottomcap 24, along with other surfaces on the bottom of flask 21 which mayhave rough edges or protrusions. As illustrated in FIG. 3, bottom cap 24can be injection molded from plastic and bonded to the flask 21 in aknown manner. Or, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the bottom cap can bemade of stainless steel and bonded to the flask 21 in a known manner.

The top of flask 21 includes threads and other attachment means forattaching a cup 30 and a stopper 40. In the illustrated embodiment,flask 21 provides threads 26 for the cup 30. Threads 26 are formeddirectly on the exterior shell 23 of flask 21. Cup 30 has mutual threads31 that mate with threads 26 to hold cup 30 on the container 10 forstorage. The cup 30 can advantageously be injection molded from plastic,and may or may not include a handle to facilitate grasping by the user.The cup 30 can be made more visually appealing if it is made from atransparent plastic material, as shown in FIG. 1.

Stopper 40 closes the opening in the main chamber 20 to retain thebeverage, and includes means for opening the main chamber so that thebeverage can be dispensed. Any suitable stopper can be used for thesepurposes. Threads 28 can be formed directly on the exterior shell 23 offlask 21 for attaching stopper 40. Stopper 40 includes mating threads 41that engage with threads 28 to hold the stopper on the flask 21. A seal42 may also be used between the flask 21 and stopper 40 to ensure theretention of the beverage by preventing leaks. A “pop-up” valved stopperis shown employed in FIGS. 1 and 2. A two-spouted pull-up stopper isshown employed in FIG. 3.

Elastomeric bands 40 can be included on the exterior surface 23 a offlask 21 to assist the user in gripping the container 10. Elastomericbands 40 can be made from any appropriate elastomeric material, such asPVC. Elastomeric bands 40 provide an area of increased friction wherethe user's fingers can form a stronger hold on the container 10.Elastomeric bands 40 may also be visually appealing to the user, and thevisual effect may also serve an additional functional purpose ofassisting in the identification of the container 10. The elastomericbands 40 can be made in one of several different colors to differentiateone container from another similar container. This differentiation,while potentially adding some cost to the manufacture of the container10, can be achieved with varying the color of a relatively smallcomponent of the container 10 to minimize the additional cost.

To protect the elastomeric bands 40 and to assist in their properplacement on the container 10 during manufacture, they can be situatedbetween raised ridges 27 on the exterior shell 23 of flask 21. Theraised ridges 27 can be formed on each side of each elastomeric band 40.The raised ridges 27 are raised from the profile of the immediatelysurrounding exterior surface 23 a by a height equal to or greater thanthe thickness of the elastomeric bands 40. The ridges 27 can be formedinexpensively as an integral part of the exterior shell 23 of flask 21.The raised ridges 27 are formed by bending of the material used inmanufacturing the exterior shell 23. The thickness of the exterior shellis approximately the same at the raised ridges 27 as the thickness atother portions of the exterior shell, i.e. the thickness of the exteriorshell is approximately uniform throughout.

The raised ridges 27 help keep the elastomeric bands 40 in position andhelp protect the bands from wear, scratches, and tears. The elastomericbands 40 are made from an elastomeric material to increase theirfriction against a user's fingers. However, as a result the elastomericmaterial may not be as durable as is desirable, so the raised ridges 27perform an important function in protecting the bands.

Two elastomeric bands 40 are shown in FIGS. 1-3. More or fewerelastomeric bands 40 may also be used, as desirable for a particularcontainer.

Although the invention has been described through a description of aparticular arrangement of components in one embodiment, those in the artwill recognize that various modifications and variations can be madewithout departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Theforegoing descriptions are illustrative only and are not intended tolimit the scope of the invention in any way. The scope of the inventionshall be defined by the appended claims.

1. A container for holding beverages comprising: a flask defining a mainchamber with an opening in the top of flask for accessing the mainchamber, the flask having an exterior surface that a user can grip whenholding the container; a cup attached to the top of the flask; a stopperattached to the top of the flask for sealing the opening and retainingand dispensing the beverage; an elastomeric band situated on theexterior surface of the flask and extending circumferentially around theflask, the elastomeric band facilitating gripping of the container bythe user.
 2. The container of claim 1 wherein the flask is vacuuminsulated and comprises: an interior shell and an exterior shell and avacuum insulated space between the interior shell and the exteriorshell, the exterior surface being formed on the exterior shell.
 3. Thecontainer of claim 2 wherein the interior shell and the exterior shellare made from stainless steel.
 4. The container of claim 3 furthercomprising: raised ridges formed on each side of the elastomeric band,the raised ridges being integrally formed as part of the exterior shellof the flask; and wherein the thickness of the exterior shell isapproximately uniform at the raised ridges and at the other portions ofthe exterior shell.
 5. The container of claim 4 further comprising: abottom cap covering the bottom portion of the flask 21, the bottom caphaving a generally flat and smooth surface.
 6. The container of claim 4wherein the cup has threads for attaching to the flask, and the flaskhas mating threads formed directly the exterior shell and as an integralpart of the exterior shell.
 7. The container of claim 6 wherein the cupis made from a generally transparent plastic.
 8. The container of claim2 further comprising: raised ridges formed on each side of theelastomeric band, the raised ridges being integrally formed as part ofthe exterior shell of the flask; and wherein the thickness of theexterior shell is approximately uniform at the raised ridges and at theother portions of the exterior shell.
 9. The container of claim 8further comprising: a bottom cap covering the bottom portion of theflask, the bottom cap having a generally flat and smooth surface. 10.The container of claim 8 wherein the cup has threads for attaching tothe flask, and the flask has mating threads formed directly the exteriorshell and as an integral part of the exterior shell.
 11. The containerof claim 10 wherein the cup is made from a generally transparentplastic.
 12. The container of claim 8 wherein the container comprises atleast two elastomeric bands, each elastomeric band being situated on theexterior surface of the flask and extending circumferentially around theflask, and each elastomeric band facilitating gripping of the containerby the user.
 13. The container of claim 12 further comprising: raisedridges formed on each side of the elastomeric bands, the raised ridgesbeing integrally formed as part of the exterior shell of the flask; andwherein the thickness of the exterior shell is approximately uniform atthe raised ridges and at the other portions of the exterior shell.